Is "Lord of the Rings" a trilogy of books in Tolkien's opinion? - Science Fiction & Fantasy Stack Exchange up vote 62 down vote accepted TL;DR Tolkien himself did NOT consider it a trilogy. It shouldn't even be called 3 books, since Tolkien didn't refer to them as books, but as volumes, and any time he used the word he air-quoted it as 'books'. Wikipedia gives us a good start: Tolkien regarded it as a single work and divided it into a prologue, six books, and five appendices. Because of post-World War II paper shortages, it was originally published in three volumes. To back that up, we can refer to Tolkien's letters: Letter 136 P.S. I have given some thought to the matter of sub-titles for the volumes, which you thought were desirable. But I do not find it easy, as the 'books', though they must be grouped in pairs, are not really paired; and the middle pair (III/IV) are not really related. Would it not do if the 'book-titles' were used: e.g. The Lord of the Rings: Vol. I The Ring Sets out and The Ring Goes South; Vol.

II The Treason of Isengard, and The Ring goes East; Vol. III The War of the Ring, and The End of the Third Age'? If not, I can at the moment think of nothing better than : I The Shadow Grows II The Ring in the Shadow III The War of the Ring or The Return of the King. JRRT. . Letter 149 The (unavoidable) disadvantage of issuing in three pans has been shown in the 'shapelessness' that several readers have found, since that is true if one volume is supposed to stand alone. 'Trilogy', which is not really accurate, is partly to blame. There is too much 'hobbitry' in Vol. I taken by itself; and several critics have obviously not got far beyond Chapter I. And the most direct one: Letter 165 P.S. The book is not of course a 'trilogy'. That and the titles of the volumes was a fudge thought necessary for publication, owing to length and cost. There is no real division into 3, nor is any one pan intelligible alone.

The story was conceived and written as a whole and the only natural divisions are the 'books' I-VI (which originally had titles). Further details can be found in this excellent article from The Tolkien Society: " The Lord of the Rings: The Tale of a Text ": The Lord of the Rings is not a trilogy: by the time it was being prepared for publication in 1950, Tolkien was thinking of it as a duology: a book of two parts, the other being The Silmarillion - a work concieved of as being of equal size to The Lord of the Rings (Letter 126 to Milton Waldon, 10/3/1950). ... Tolkien's publisher, Stanley Unwin, was not convinced by the idea of publishing The Silmarillion, and wanted to publish just The Lord of the Rings. In 1952 the publishers estimated the price for a single volume would be at least £3 10s, and were looking into the possibility of publishing the work in two volumes, as well as for a cheaper printer.

As we know, Allen and Unwin decided that three volumes was the best number: an economic, not a literary decision: Tolkien at this point was still thinking of his work as six books (Letter 136 to Stanley Unwin, 24/3/1953) At least one of the editions of The Lord of the Rings that I have includes a Note on the Text written by Douglas A. Anderson, October 1986. It starts: The Lord of the Rings is often erroneously called a trilogy, when it is in fact a single novel, consisting of six books plus appendices,1 published for convenience in three volumes. And the footnote: 1 Tolkien's titles for the six books were not used. A contents listing with the manuscript of The Lord of the Rings at Marquette University gives them as follows: Volume I, "The First Journey" and "The Journey of the Nine Companions"; Volume II, "The Treason of Isengard" and "The Journey of the Ringbearers"; Volume III, "The War of the Ring" and "The End of the Third Age." A variant set of titles can be found in Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, p.

167. A similar passage can be found here , but is dated April 1993. Lord Rings by Tolkien, Trilogy - AbeBooks Lord Rings by Tolkien, Trilogy You Searched For: Results (1 - 30) of 612 1 (378) Search Within These Results: Published by George Allen & Unwin (1954) Used Hardcover First Edition Signed Quantity Available: 1 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: George Allen & Unwin, 1954. Hardcover. Book Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Fine. 1st Edition. First Editions, First Printings of all three books. A spectacular set SIGNED by Tolkien on a laid in signature in the First book, "The Fellowship of the Ring." Each book is a FIRST EDITION, FIRST IMPRESSION including "Return of the King" with First Issue point "without the number "4" on page 49. All three books have lovely First Printing dustjackets with only minor wear to the edges, no pieces missing. The books are in excellent condition. The bindings are tight, and the boards are crisp with minor wear to the panels and edges. The pages are clean.

There is no writing, marks or bookplates in any of the books. Overall, a beautiful set of this Tolkien trilogy SIGNED by the author in the First Book. We buy Tolkien First Editions. Signed by Author(s). Bookseller Inventory # ABE-6048536408 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: London: George Allen and Unwin Ltd, 1954-1955, 1955. 3 volumes, octavo. Original red cloth, gilt-lettered spines, top edges red. With the dust jackets. Each volume housed in a custom red cloth solander box with maroon labels to spines. Contemporary Foyle's ticket to front pastedown of vol. I. Spine-ends very lightly bumped, corners faintly rubbed, top edge of Fellowship slightly splashed and that of Two Towers negligibly so. An excellent set, internally fine and the maps especially clean, in the dust jackets with ring-and-eye motifs bright and fresh, a little rubbing and a few nicks at spine-ends, and otherwise vols. I and II each with one short nick along the top edges. Folding map at the end of each volume.

First editions, first impressions, the Return of the King in first state with unbroken type and no signature mark (previously identified by Hammond as the second state), in the second state dust jacket with reviews added to the rear panel. This is one of a possible 3,000 sets in first impression throughout, though in practice this is a work that was often read to pieces, with the dust jackets a particularly rare survival. The Lord of the Rings trilogy is one of the most influential literary works of the century. Its first reception was mixed: favourable and perceptive reviews from C. S. Lewis and from W. H. Auden, who had attended Tolkien's Oxford lectures, were countered by others who were hostile, sometimes bitterly so. But the trilogy went on to astonishing sales and forged a major change in public literary taste. "Heroic fantasy" has since become one of the most commercially successful literary genres, having had a transformative impact upon the entertainment industry from electronic games to cinema. Hammond A5a. i. ii. iii. Bookseller Inventory # 106294 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: London George Allen and Unwin 1971, 1971.

Ninth printing of the one volume paperback edition. Signed by the author J.R.R. Tolkien on the title page in blue ink. This copy was signed and given to Fred Archer, one of the movers, who moved Mr. Tolkien from Bournemouth to Merton Street in March 1972, an incident recorded in Humphrey CarpenterÕs biography of Tolkien. A near fine bright copy with a hint of use in printed wrappers. The basis of the film trilogy directed by Peter Jackson, starring Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Cate Blanchett, Andy Serkis, Ian Holm, and Christopher Lee. Peter Jackson won three Oscars in 2003 for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Writing - Adapted Screenplay for the third and final film ÔThe Lord of the Rings: The Return of the KingÕ. Enclosed in a custom handsome dark green leather and cloth clamshell box. Bookseller Inventory # 20399E Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: George Allen and Unwin - 1955, 1954.

FIRST EDITIONS, third volume with signature mark present and lines of type sagging on p.49 (designated as first state by Hammond in his bibliography, but later revised by him to second state), folding-maps drawn by Christopher Tolkien at rear of each volume, very short closed tear to title-page of third volume, pp. 424; 352; 416, 8vo, original red cloth, backstrips lettered in gilt and slightly softened at ends with a small amount of very gentle rubbing to tips, slight lean to spine of second volume, very minor knock to top corner of lower board on second volume, top edges red with slight partial fading to that of second volume, faint partial browning to free endpapers of first volume, dustjackets with backstrip panels a little sunned with some very shallow chipping at ends, similar chipping to corners of first two volumes with a short split at head of front flap-fold of first volume, very short closed tear to rear panel of same, a very good set. A splendid, unrestored set of first printings.

Bookseller Inventory # 58300 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: George Allen & Unwin 1954-55, London, 1954. First Edition. Three octavo volumes; original red cloth boards, lettered in gilt on spines; red topstains; original dustjackets; maps bound into each volume following text. First Impression of each volume; Third State of text in Return of the King, with signature mark and slipped text on p.49. The three volumes nicely preserved, straight and tight with just mild rubbing to board edges, in original unclipped dustwrappers. Fellowship with faint foxing to endpapers and fading to top-stain near spine, jacket unclipped and just slightly faded on spine panel; The Two Towers exhibiting slight mottling to boards, uneven fading to top-stain, jacket with two brief paper-tape reinforcements to verso, darkened and spotted on spine panel with red lettering somewhat faded (but still perfectly legible); Return of the King quite Near Fine, with top-stain bright and unrubbed, in clean, very slightly faded first issue jacket.

Together, a quite presentable and unrestored set of Tolkien's much-loved and highly sought-after trilogy. Bookseller Inventory # 17080 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: London: George Allen and Unwin, 1954ï¿½5, 1954. 3 volumes, octavo (225 x 145mm). Finely bound by the Chelsea Bindery in full red morocco, titles and decoration to spines gilt, "Eye of Sauron" to front boards gilt, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. Housed in a matching leather entry slip case. An excellent set. Each volume has a map illustrated by the Author. First editions, first impressions, the Return of the King in third state with the signature mark "4" and the sagging line of type on p. 49 (previously identified by Hammond as first state). The Lord of the Rings trilogy is one of the most influential literary works of the century. Its first reception was mixed: favourable and perceptive reviews from C. S. Lewis and from W. H. Auden, who had attended Tolkien's Oxford lectures, were countered by others who were hostile, sometimes bitterly so.

But the trilogy went on to astonishing sales and forged a major change in public literary taste. "Heroic fantasy" has since become one of the most commercially successful literary genres, having a transforming impact upon the entertainment industry, from electronic games to movies. Bookseller Inventory # 91617 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: London: George Allen and Unwin, 1954ï¿½5, 1954. 3 volumes, octavo. Finely bound in red morocco, titles and decoration to spines gilt, raised bands, single rule to boards gilt, twin rule to turn-ins gilt, marbled endpapers, gilt edges. A fine set. Each volume has a map illustrated by the author. First editions, first impressions, the Lord of the Rings in first state with signature mark "4" present on p. 49. The Lord of the Rings trilogy is one of the most influential literary works of the century. Its first reception was mixed: favourable and perceptive reviews from C. S. Lewis and from W. H. Auden, who had attended Tolkien's Oxford lectures, were countered by others who were hostile, sometimes bitterly so.

But the trilogy went on to astonishing sales and forged a major change in public literary taste. "Heroic fantasy" has since become one of the most commercially successful literary genres, having a transforming impact upon the entertainment industry, from electronic games to movies. Bookseller Inventory # 110197 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1954. Hardcover. Book Condition: Very Good Minus. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Volume I, The Fellowship of the Ring, published in 1954, Volume II, The Two Towers, published in 1955, and Volume III, The Return of the King, published in 1956. ** First U.S. Editions, all three volumes FIRST PRINTINGS - only 1,000 copies of The Two Towers were in the initial U.S. printing, so to find a set comprised entirely of first printings is rare. HOUSED IN A CUSTOM BOX.

While The Lord of the Rings was made into a highly successful film series starting with The Fellowship of the Ring in 2001, the books were widely read in the 60s and 70s and imbued a generation with love of Hobbits and the tale of the Great Ring. *** DESCRIPTION: Volumes bound in light blue cloth, gilt lettering on the front and spine, cream endpapers, each volume has a map tipped into the back of the book, Volumes I and II have identical maps of Middle-Earth, Volume III has a close-up showing Rohan, Gondor, and Mordor. Unclipped dust jackets have decorative vignette on a colored background surrounding title within a white circle, back of each jacket varies (Volume I gives a bio of J.R.R. Tolkien, Volume II a New York Times book review of The Fellowship of the Ring, Volume III has review quotes for the Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers). Pagination: Volume I, 423 pages; Volume II, 352 pages, and Volume III 416 pages.

*** CONDITION: Overall all three volumes are in very good condition, although they have clearly been read more than once, hinges in Volumes II and III are solid, hinges in Volume I are starting, there is some bumping to head and tails of the spines with some wear, the corners are generally very good although the bottom corners of Volume I are starting to wear through, Volumes I and III have prior owner small address labels on front free endpapers, and all volumes have some toning to the first few pages and some light staining to the text block edges. Dust jackets are not price-clipped, although there is no price printed on Volume I (correct per Hammond), all three are overall very good with some edgewear and old, minor staining to the inside of the jackets near the spine. Maps are all in near fine condition with no tears and only one unintended crease. *** CITATIONS: Hammond A5.b.i., ii., iii; as amended in "The Tolkien Collector" No. 23, July 2000, wherein he corrected the bibliographic details for the copyright page of The Two Towers for the U.S. edition. ***POSTAGE: Any additional postage will be covered by seller for this set.

***Swan's Fine Books is pleased to be a member of the IOBA and we stand behind every book we sell. Please contact us with any questions you may have, we are here to help. Bookseller Inventory # 14012501 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1954. First American Edition. First Printing, one of 1,500 copies (bound from British sheets). Octavo; turquoise cloth, with titles stamped in gilt on spine and front cover; yellow topstain; dustjacket; [7], 8-423pp + illustrated map of Middle Earth, printed in black and red, tipped onto rear pastedown. Hint of sunning to spine, upper board corners gently tapped (though still sharp), with date of "1.1.55" written in a tiny hand at lower edge of rear pastedown; Very Good+.

In the correct first printing dustjacket, unpriced, with the ascender clipped on the 'd' in 'Frodo' on the tenth line on the rear flap, the following 'o' not nicked, and the lower edge of Tolkien's photograph on the rear panel cut straight across (not 'V' shaped); gentle sunning to spine, rear panel slightly dusty, with the usual pinpoint wear to front panel, a few small nicks and short tears; an unrestored, Very Good+ example. First volume of what is likely the most significant trilogy of books written in the last century, and the basis for the Oscar winning film directed by Peter Jackson. Scarce in the correct dustjacket. Hammond A5.b.i; cf. The Tolkien Library. Bookseller Inventory # 2065 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: George Allen & Unwin, 1955. Hardcover. Book Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. Pauline Baynes (illustrator). 1st Edition. Octavo. Fellowship Of The Ring is a 4th Impression from 1955 in the correct wrapper.

The Two Towers is a 2nd Impression from 1955 in the correct wrapper. The Return Of The King is a 1st Impression, 1st state, without slipped text, or printers number '4', from 1955 in the correct 1st state wrapper, without quotes to rear flap. (2nd state wrappers have quotes underneath the titles) An extremely early set, made even better by the inclusion of the exceptionally rare 1st state Return Of The King. A superb set, all in original correct wrappers, with small splits, wear and toning. All clean and bright examples, without foxing. The books are wonderful examples, with deep red orginal cloth boards and original maps in Fine condition. All from one owner, Ann Christophers. The Fellowship Of The Ring - Near Fine book with deep red boards, in a Very Good + unclipped wrapper with the price of 21s to front and rear flaps. Mint map in the rear of the book. Wonderful red top stain. Wrapper is worn with small splits to joints and some minor loss to head of wrapper. One small puncture mark to flap joint. A better than usual example.

Some light ghosting to front endpaper. One neat ownership name. The Two Towers - A very Near Fine book and a wonderful example with deep red boards, in a Near Fine unclipped wrapper with the price of 21s to front and rear flaps. Minor wear to edges of wrapper with one or two small splits. Some splitting to joint of spine and rear panel. Mint map in rear of book. A fabulous copy. Some light ghosting to front endpaper. One neat ownership name. Book has slight lean and light marking to the corner of the lower edge of the pages. The Return Of The King - A very Near Fine book and a smashing example with deep red boards, in a Near Fine unclipped 1st State wrapper with the price of 21s net to front and rear flaps. Lovely red top stain. Mint map in rear of book. A super example with some light wear to edges and joints. Small splits and some minor loss. Some light ghosting to front endpaper. A fantastic set for the Tolkien collector. Book.

Bookseller Inventory # 265 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: GEORGE ALLEN & UNWIN LTD, LONDON, 1957. HARD BACK RED. Book Condition: GOOD. JACKET: GOOD DJ. 7 X 10". Tight, clean & intact copies. Tolkiens classic saga of the Lord of the Rings. Red cloth boards having gold lettering on spines. Tight, clean & intact copies. Grey dust jackets with middle earth symbolism on front. Slight wear & fading to spine & edges of DJ. Creasing at spine areas. DJ are price clipped, inside bottom front flap. Pages are yellowing with age. There are 3 books included here. 1st. part THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING 7th impression; 2nd part THE TWO TOWERS 5th impression; & part 3 THE RETURN OF THE KING. Book 2 is a third impression, The other two copies state fifth impression. The books are very well matched.

Previous ownership signiture in book 2, in blue ink DATE PUBLISHED: 1957 EDITION: Bookseller Inventory # 080495 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: 0, 0. No Binding. Book Condition: Near Fine. MICHAEL HAGUE (illustrator). 1st Edition. MICHAEL HAGUE ORIGINAL PUBLISHED ILLUSTRATION FROM "THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING", THE LORD OF THE RINGS MICHAEL HAGUE, (AMERICAN 1948-DATE) A STUNNING DETAILED PUBLISHED ILLUSTRATION, USED AS THE FRONTIS PIECE FROM THE PREMIUM LEATHER BOUND COLLECTOR'S EDITION, THREE BOOK SET PUBLISHED BY THE EASTON PRESS, 1984. THE ARTWORK DEPICTS GANDALF AND THE BALROG FROM THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, FROM THE LORD OF THE RINGS TRILOGY.

WATERCOLOR ON BOARD, 7¿X 11¿ ART IMAGE SIZE AND 9" X 13" BOARD SIZE, UNFRAMED Stunning Published Original watercolor illustration on board by Michael Hague which is the Frontis piece for the book, THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING. The piece depicts Gandalf and The Balrog from the infamous scene on the bridge. This is a beautifully detailed piece, (with Gandolf's sword and flowing hair appearing as magically illuminated-use the zoom feature for a close-up view), by one of the leading American illustrators from one of the most important pieces of fantasy literature in the 20th century.The illustration is signed lower right. The art is in overall excellent condition with publishers notes outside of margins. Unframed. PROVENANCE: The art was purchased from an Auction House who was commissioned to sell several original illustrations by Michael Hague. A copy of the original bill of sale will be included with the piece, and will provide both provenance and authenticity for the art. This piece is SIGNED by Michael Hague lower right. The art is in great condition and would be stunning framed. ADDITIONAL IMAGES AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST.

Please see our Abe store for other original illustration art and rare books. Bookseller Inventory # 000797 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Allen & Unwin - 1964, 1963. original tungsten 'Kodak Safety Film' colour transparency, 'Three-Point Reflection Guide colour-bar to left of image with grey-scale colour bar to right, 14 x 11 inch approx., preserved and protected between two sheets of acetate with 'Vibicolor' sticker at head, fine. An ultra-large format (ULF) Kodak transparency taken directly from the original artwork by Pauline Baynes, and showing her pencilled registration marks thereupon - one of likely two (possibly three) such transparencies used to illustrate the slipcase of the deluxe edition Lord of the Rings from 1963-4. An interesting survival, which gives a vivid reproduction of this striking image, the transparency constitutes one half of the triptych that the slipcase depicts - showing the erupting Mount Doom from 'The Return of the King' beside a portion of the central panel representing 'The Two Towers'.

The use of arching trees to create the border of each, and the grotesque creatures (these Baynes's creation, without any particular textual referents), demonstrate her ability to balance a sense of scale with a fineness of detail - a combination that made her the perfect illustrator for both Lewis and Tolkien. The film - identified by its notches as Kodak Ektachrome 64T - has not suffered any loss in quality since it was originally produced and could still be used(with the agreement of the copyright holder, of course)for its original purpose of making an accurate and detailed print of this image. This is the closest thing, in terms of the vividness of the reproduction, to Pauline Baynes's original artwork and a fascinating part of the publication history of the trilogy. (Hammond & Anderson p. 98). Bookseller Inventory # 57335 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1956. First American Edition. First Printing, one of 1,500 copies.

Octavo; tuquoise cloth, with titles stamped in gilt on spine and front cover; yellow topstain; dustjacket; 416pp; fold-out map of Middle Earth tipped onto rear pastedown. All first issue points present: 1956 at the bottom of the title page, oversized "5" on the jacket price, and the number "4" in dropped type at the bottom of page 49. Single, shallow bump to upper edge of rear board, else fresh and Fine. Dustjacket is unclipped, with two tiny nicks to upper edge and a handful of small edge tears; a notably bright, Near Fine example. The concluding volume of what is likely the most significant trilogy of books written in the last century, and the basis for the Oscar winning film directed by Peter Jackson. Bookseller Inventory # 416 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1955. Hard Cover. Book Condition: Good. Dust Jacket Included. First American Edition. First American edition, first printing.

Publisher's light blue cloth, lettered in gilt, with the original fold-out map in the rear of the text; in the original pictorial teal dust jacket designed by Walter Lorraine, with a dragon and tree illustration to the front board in dark teal, lettered in maroon. A good copy, with some light wear and minor toning to the extremities, spine cracked and holding inside the front cover, former owner's inscription to the front free endpaper, otherwise clean pages; unclipped dust jacket, with some wear and rubbing to the extremities, faint toning to the spine, short losses to the spine ends, some rubbing to the folds, with some minor splits to the edges of the front hinge, a few minor nicks to the panel edges, some faint soiling to the otherwise bright panels. Overall, a presentable copy in the original dust jacket. The Two Towers is the second installment of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings - a fantasy trilogy, written as the sequel to Tolkien's 1937 novel The Hobbit.

It tells the story of the second attempt of the men, elves, and dwarves of Middle Earth to destroy the Dark Lord Sauron, the "Lord of the Rings." In The Two Towers, Frodo and Sam continue alone on their increasingly perilous journey to destroy the ring while the remaining members of the Fellowship try to protect the realms of Middle Earth from the troops of Sauron, who continues to gain strength as Frodo brings the Ring closer to Mordor. Bookseller Inventory # JRRT005 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Houghton Mifflin, 1954. Hardcover. Book Condition: Good. First North American edition, First Printing, with original dust jackets. All first edition points present in all 3 volumes. ALL VOLUMES: bookplate to front pastedown, former owner's name in ink on ffep. No other marks or writing. No foxing. Original maps tipped in at rear pastedown. Some wear to extremities. DJs not price clipped. THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING (1954): Fair condition in Poor dust jacket. Front and rear hinges cracked. Some yellowing to endpapers.

DJ worn, chipped, torn, rubbed, detached at spine, lower 3" of DJ spine missing. THE TWO TOWERS (1955): Good+ condition in Fair dust jacket. Text clean, binding tight. DJ worn, chipped, repaired with tape. THE RETURN OF THE KING (1956): Good+ condition in Fair dust jacket. Text clean, binding tight. DJ worn, chipped. Proceeds from this sale go to benefit the Literacy Council of Alaska and the UAF Kenelm Philip Entomology Fund. Bookseller Inventory # 004911 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: George Allen & Unwin, Ltd. Hardcover. Book Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. London: George Allen & Unwin, 1957, 1959, 1958.

The Fellowship of the Ring (8th impression of the first edition) VG/VG- Red linen boards, clean and bright with bumped corners and black line which runs along the bottom edge of back and front.(probably caused by old mylar covers) Pages yellowing and owner's name in ink on FFep, otherwise interior unmarked. Map in back has small tear at fold. Dustwrapper is not price cut. Wear at extremeties and some small stains at spine top and bottom edges. Quarter inch brown spot at fold, though mostly bright and clean. The Two Towers( ixth impression) VG/VG book is similarly marked with black stripe along bottom edge, with name on FFep and yellowing pages. but the map is intact. The dustwrapper has small marks at spine top and bottom with minor soiling on back. Price 21s. The Return of the King( fourth impression) VG-/VG book is marked with black stripe as others. Boards are slightly soiled. Interior clean save owner's name on FFep. Map in back is intact. Dustwrapper has marks at top and bottom of spine and minor wear at edges, but bright and clean. This is a very nice set of the Tolkien classic.

Bookseller Inventory # 569 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: George Allen & Unwin Ltd., London, 1956. Hard Cover. Book Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. First Edition.. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. BOOKS IN VERY GOOD+ CONDITION, DJ'S IN VG CONDITION, AND FOLDING MAPS IN VG TO FINE CONDITION. Uniformly bound in original red cloth, with dust jackets in protective mylar covers, spines darkened. First Part: The Fellowship of the Ring is Fifth Impression (1956) in Sixth Impression Dust Jacket. Second Part: The Two Towers is Fifth Impression (1957) in a Fifth Impression Dust Jacket. Lower edge damp mark to front cover & dust jacket. Third Part: Return of the King is Third Impression (1957) with a Third Impression Dust Jacket. NO LABELS, NOR INSCRIPTIONS. Bookseller Inventory # 004243 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: George Allen & Unwin Ltd., London, 1966. Red Cloth. Book Condition: Near Fine Books.

Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine Dustjackets. Folding Maps (illustrator). Second Edition, First Printing. An Attractive Matched Set Of The First Printings Of The Revised (Final) Edition, The Text Of Tolkien Reprinted Today. "Second Edition" Noted On Copyright Page And No Additional Printings Indicated. Corrected Text On Dust Jackets For Volume Ii And Volume Iii, With Correct Titles At Foot Of Front Flap. Volume 1 With A Small Areas Of Light Or Dark Discoloration To Front Cover, And One Small Area On Spine; Volume Ii With 1/2" X 1/8 " Area With A Light Stain On Front Flap, And Two Similar Discolorations On Rear Panel 1/4" X 1/2" And 2" X 1/4". Bookseller Inventory # 006155 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1956. Handsomely bound in the original finely-woven blue cloth and stamped brightly in gilt on the front boards and on the spine.

The large fold-out map, crisp and clean, is present at the end of the volume. The book is very clean and tight throughout with a light yellow topstaining. In the correct, original dust jacket, which is lightly worn and chipped at the top and bottom of the spine ends and rubbed at the corners; with the price of "$5.00" at the top of the inside front flap which has some light vertical creases along the outside edge. With a small, triangular piece missing at the bottom of the right-hand corner of the front panel. With light soiling to the rear panel which has reviews of the first two volumes of the trilogy. The Lord of the Rings is an epic high fantasy novel written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's fantasy novel The Hobbit, but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in stages between 1937 and 1949, much of it during World War II. It is the second best-selling novel ever written, with over 150 million copies sold. This is the last volume in the trilogy.

(Wikipedia) First Edition with title page date of 1956. No subsequent printings listed. Bookseller Inventory # 352 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Folio Society, 2002. Full-Leather. Book Condition: Like New. Ingahild Grathmer (illustrator). Limited. published to commemorate the 400th anniversary of its original publication. Limited to 1,750 copies, numbered on a special limitation page. Illustrations by Ingahild Grathmer, calligraphic lettering drawn by John Andrew. Bound by Smith Settle of Otley in Wassa Goatskin with hand-woven Indian silk sides. Measured about 5 3/4" x 9 1/4". Gilded top edges with ribbon markers. Presented in goatskin cushioned scallop edged slipcases with calligraphy by John Andrew. LIST OF TITLES: 1. THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING: being the first part of THE LORD OF THE RINGS . . 2. THE TWO TOWERS: being the second part of THE LORD OF THE RINGS . .3.

THE RETURN OF THE KING: being the third part of THE LORD OF THE RINGS. Bookseller Inventory # FS338 Destination, Rates & Speeds Item Description: Readers Union, London, 1960. Hard Cover. Book Condition: Near Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine. J.R.R. Tolkien (illustrator). First Edition. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien. A beautiful looking set of this unusual presentation of Tolkien's trilogy. Not for sale to the general public, limited to members of the Readers Union only. Published by the Readers Union in 1960 with the permission of George Allen & Unwin Ltd, London. The books are in Near Fine condition, with no names, writing, and only the lightest offsetting or foxing to the endpapers, a few light spots to the edge of the textblock. Housed in the original dustjackets, all are Near Fine condition, with no edgewear or loss to the spine tips or folds. None of the dustjackets are price clipped.

These unusual dustjackets are in fabulous condition, showing no edgewear or tanning, all three clean and bright. All maps are tipped in at the rear, and in excellent condition. No tears or extra folds. This is the set that features a line drawing by an unnamed artist for Readers Union of 'Sauron's Eye'. The only set to have this particular and very unusual dustjacket. Scarce in this lovely condition. Includes a custom leather slipcase for display and protection of these beautiful books. Digital photo's available, inquire if interested. Other Tolkien books available, include both the UK and US editions, original cloth bindings, custom fine bindings, and Signed/Numbered/Limited Editions. Near Fine / Near Fine. Bookseller Inventory # 1617 The Lord of the Rings - Tolkien Gateway The Lord of the Rings The name The Lord of the Rings refers to more than one character, item or concept. For a list of other meanings, see The Lord of the Rings (disambiguation) . "I shan't call it the end, till we've cleared up the mess." — Sam This article or section needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of article quality .

The Lord of the Rings Author Format Hardcover "The English-speaking world is divided into those who have read The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit and those who are going to read them." ― Sunday Times The Lord of the Rings is a book by J.R.R. Tolkien , the sequel to his earlier work, The Hobbit . It was published in three volumes in 1954 and 1955. The story's titular character is the Dark Lord Sauron of Mordor . The primary villain of the work, he created the One Ring to control nineteen other Rings of Power , and is thus the "Lord of the Rings." Sauron, in turn, was the servant of an earlier Dark Lord, Morgoth (Melkor), who is prominent in Tolkien's The Silmarillion , the history of Middle-earth. Contents Books and volumes Writing Tolkien did not originally intend to write a sequel to The Hobbit , and instead wrote several other children's tales, including Roverandom and Farmer Giles of Ham .

As his main work, Tolkien began to outline the history of Arda , telling tales of the Silmarils , and many other stories of how the races and situations that we read about in the Lord of the Rings trilogy came to be. Tolkien died before he could complete and put together The Silmarillion , but his son Christopher Tolkien edited his father's work, filled in gaps and published it in 1977. Tolkien had a deep desire to write a mythology for England, especially after his horrific experiences during the First World War. He was also influenced by the effects of continued industrialisation, where he saw much of the England he loved passing away and became aware of the immense evil in the world. Thus to understand his writings we must be aware of how Tolkien the scholar influences Tolkien the author. His writing of this mythology emerges as an Oxford philologist well acquainted with Northern European Medieval Literature including the great mythic works such as the Hervarar saga , the Völsunga saga , the influential Beowulf as well as other Old Norse , Old and Middle English Texts. He was also inspired by non-Germanic works such as the Finnish epic Kalevala .

A man who had created his first language by the age of seven, he was driven by a desire to write a mythology for England influenced by his exposure and expertise of these ancient traditions. The need for such a myth was often a topic of conversation in his meetings with the Inklings , fellow Oxford scholars who have been described as Christian Romantics, meeting weekly and discussing Icelandic myths and their own unpublished compositions. Tolkien agreed with one of the other members of the group, C.S. Lewis , that if there were no adequate myths for England then they would have to write their own. Tolkien's work has been commonly interpreted in this light. Persuaded by his publishers, he started 'a new hobbit' in December 1937. After several false starts, the story of the One Ring soon emerged, and the book mutated from being a sequel to The Hobbit to being, in theme, more of a sequel to the unpublished Silmarillion . The idea of the first chapter (A Long-Expected Party) arrived fully-formed, although the reasons behind Bilbo's disappearance, and the significance of the Ring did not arrive, along with the title The Lord of the Rings until spring 1938 .

Originally he was going to write another story in which Bilbo had used up all his treasure and was looking for another adventure to gain more; however he remembered the ring and the powers it had and decided to write about that instead. He started to write it with Bilbo as the main character but decided that the story was too serious to use the fun loving Hobbit so Tolkien looked to use a member of Bilbo's family. He thought about using Bilbo's son but this generated some difficult questions — Where was his wife? How could Bilbo let his son go into that kind of danger? — so he looked for an alternate character to carry the ring. In Greek legend, it was a hero's nephew that gained the item of power, and so into existence came the Hobbit Frodo. Writing was slow due to Tolkien's perfectionism, and was frequently interrupted by his obligations as an examiner, and other academic duties. In fact, the first sentence of The Hobbit was written on a blank page a student had left on an exam paper that Tolkien was grading — "In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit".

He seems to have abandoned the book during most of 1943 and only re-started it in April 1944. This effort was written as a serial for Christopher Tolkien and C.S. Lewis — the former would be sent copies of chapters as they were written while he was serving in Africa in the Royal Air Force . He made another push in 1946, and showed a copy of the manuscript to his publishers in 1947. The story was effectively finished the next year, but Tolkien did not finish revising earlier parts of the work until 1949. A dispute with his publishers, Allen and Unwin , led to the book being offered to Collins in 1950. He intended the Silmarillion (itself largely unrevised at this point) to be published along with The Lord of the Rings, but Allen and Unwin were unwilling to do this. After his contact at Collins, Milton Waldman , expressed the belief that The Lord of the Rings itself 'urgently needed cutting', he eventually demanded that they publish the book in 1952.

They did not do so, and so Tolkien wrote to Allen and Unwin, saying "I would gladly consider the publication of any part of the stuff". Some locations and characters were inspired by Tolkien's childhood in Sarehole , then a Warwickshire village, now part of Birmingham , and in Birmingham itself. Publication For publication, due largely to post-war paper shortages, but also to keep the price of the first volume down, the book was divided into three volumes ( The Fellowship of the Ring : Books I and II; The Two Towers : Books III and IV; and The Return of the King : Books V and VI, 6 appendices). Delays in producing appendices and maps led to these being published later than originally hoped — on the 29 July and 11 November 1954 and 20 October 1955 in the United Kingdom, slightly later in the United States. The Return of the King was especially delayed. He did not, however, much like the title The Return of the King, believing it gave away too much of the storyline. He had originally suggested The War of the Ring which was dismissed by his publishers.

The books were published under a 'profit-sharing' arrangement, where Tolkien would not receive an advance or royalties until the books had broken even, but after then take a large share of the profits. An index to the entire 3-volume set at the end of third volume was promised in the first volume. However, this proved impractical to compile in a reasonable timescale. Later, in 1966, four indices which were not compiled by Tolkien were added to The Return of the King. Because the three-volume binding was so widely distributed, the work is usually referred to as the Lord of the Rings "trilogy". Tolkien himself made use of the term "trilogy" for the work, though he did at other times consider this incorrect, as it was written and conceived as a single novel. A 1999 (Millennium Edition) British ( ISBN 0-261-10387-3 ) 7-volume box set followed the six-book division authored by Tolkien, but with the Appendices from the end of Book VI bound as a separate volume. The letters of Tolkien appear on the spines of the boxed set which includes a CD.

The individual names for books in this series were decided posthumously, based on suggestions Tolkien had made during his lifetime. T Book I: The Ring Sets Out O Book II: The Ring Goes South L Book III: The Treason of Isengard K Book IV: The Ring Goes East I Book V: The War of the Ring E Book VI: The End of the Third Age N Appendices The name of the complete work is often abbreviated to 'LotR', 'LOTR', or simply 'LR', and the three volumes as FR, FOTR, or FotR (The Fellowship of the Ring), TT or TTT (The Two Towers), and RK, ROTK, or RotK (The Return of the King). Main article: The Lord of the Rings editions The three parts were first published by Allen and Unwin in 1954 - 1955 several months apart. They were later reissued many times by multiple publishers, as one, three, six or seven volumes. Two current printings are ISBN 0-618-34399-7 (one-volume) and ISBN 0-618-34624-4 (three volume set).

In the early 1960s, Donald A. Wollheim, science fiction editor of the paperback publisher Ace Books , realized that The Lord of the Rings was not protected in the United States under American copyright law because the US hardcover edition had been bound from pages printed in the UK for the British edition. Ace Books proceeded to publish an edition, unauthorized by Tolkien and without compensation to him. Tolkien made this plain to US fans who wrote to him. Grass-roots pressure became so great that Ace books withdrew their edition and made a nominal payment to Tolkien, well below what he might have been due in an appropriate publication. However, this poor beginning was overshadowed when an authorized edition followed from Ballantine Books to tremendous commercial success. By the mid-1960s the books, due to their wide exposure on the American public stage, had become a true cultural phenomenon. The Second Edition of the Lord of the Rings dates from this time — Tolkien undertook various textual revisions to produce a version of the book that would have a valid U.S. copyright. The books have been translated, with various degrees of success, into dozens of other languages.

Tolkien, an expert in philology, examined many of these translations, and had comments on each that illuminate both the translation process and his work. The enormous popular success of Tolkien's epic saga greatly expanded the demand for fantasy fiction. Largely thanks to The Lord of the Rings, the genre flowered throughout the 1960s. Many well-written books of this genre were published (comparable works include the Earthsea books of Ursula K. Le Guin , the Thomas Covenant novels of Stephen R. Donaldson, and in the case of the Gormenghast books by Mervyn Peake, and The Worm Ourobouros by E. R. Eddison, rediscovered). It also strongly influenced the role playing game industry that achieved popularity in the 1970s with Dungeons & Dragons which featured many creatures that could be found in Tolkien's books. As in all artistic fields, a great many lesser derivatives of the more prominent works appeared.

The term "Tolkienesque" is used in the genre to refer to the oft-used and abused storyline of The Lord of the Rings: a group of adventurers embarking on a quest to save a magical fantasy world from the armies of an evil " dark lord ", and is a testament to how much the popularity of these books has increased, since many critics initially decried Lord of the Rings as being " Wagner for children" (a reference to the Ring Cycle ) — a specially interesting commentary in light of a possible interpretation of The Lord of The Rings as a Christian response to Wagner, for example following [1] Oswald Spengler. In 2002 the first unabridged audio version of The Lord of the Rings was published by Recorded Books with Rob Inglis narrating. On 19 April 2009 the first e-book of the trilogy was published by HarperCollins ( ISBN 9780007322497 , ISBN 9780007322503 , ISBN 9780007322558 ).

The e-book was made available at waterstones.com, harpercollinsebooks.co.uk and tolkien.co.uk. Another verision of the e-book was made available for the Amazon Kindle. The books The Lord of the Rings began as a personal exploration by Tolkien of his interests in philology, religion (particularly Roman Catholicism); fairy tales, and Norse and Celtic mythology. Tolkien detailed his creation to an astounding extent; he created a complete mythology for his realm of Middle-earth, including genealogies of characters, languages, runes , calendars and histories. Some of this supplementary material is detailed in the appendices to The Lord of the Rings, and the mythological history was woven into a large, biblically-styled volume entitled The Silmarillion . J. R. R. Tolkien once described The Lord of the Rings as "a fundamentally religious and Catholic work" he wrote to his friend, the English Jesuit Father Robert Murray , "unconsciously so at first, but consciously in the revision."( The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien , 142).

There are many theological themes underlying the narrative, the battle of good versus evil, the triumph of humility over pride, the activity of grace, Death and Immortality, Resurrection, Salvation, Repentance, Self-Sacrifice, Free Will, Humility, Justice, Fellowship, Authority and Healing. In it the great virtues of Mercy and Pity (shown by Bilbo and Frodo towards Gollum) win the day and the message from the Lord's Prayer "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil" was very much on Tolkien's mind as Frodo struggled against the power of the One Ring (Letters, 181 and 191). Religious motifs other than Christian can be discerned as strong influences in Tolkien's Middle Earth. The pantheon of the Valar and Maiar (greater and lesser gods/angels) responsible for the creation and maintenance of everything from skies ( Manwë ) and seas ( Ulmo ), to dreams ( Lórien ) and dooms ( Mandos ) suggest a pre-Christian mythology in style, albeit that these Valar and Maiar are themselves creations of a monotheistic entity — Illuvatar or Eru, "The One".

Other pre-Christian mythological references can be seen in the representations of: a "Green Man" — Tom Bombadil, wise-men — the Istari (commonly referred to as the Wizards, perhaps more of angels), shapechangers — Beorn, undead spirits — Barrow Wights, Oathbreakers, sentient nonhumans — Dwarves, Elves, Hobbits, and, of course, Ents. Magic is utilised freely in Middle-earth, and may be found not only in the incantations of Wizards, but in the weapons and tools of warriors and craftspeople, in the perceptions and abilities of heroes, and in the natural world itself. Tolkien did repeatedly insist that his works were not an allegory of any kind, and even though his thoughts on the matter are mentioned in the introduction of the book, there has been heavy speculation about the Ruling Ring being an allegory for the atom bomb. However, Tolkien had already completed most of the book, and planned the ending in entirety, before the first atom bombs were made public to the world during the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.

However there is a strong theme of despair in front of new mechanized warfare that Tolkien himself had experienced in the trenches of World War One. The development of a specially bred orc army, and the destruction of the environment to aid this have modern resonances. Nevertheless, the author's own opinion on the matter of allegories was that he disliked them, and it would be irresponsible to dismiss such direct statements on these matters lightly. The plot of The Lord of the Rings builds from his earlier book The Hobbit and more obliquely from the history in The Silmarillion , which contains events to which the characters of The Lord of the Rings look back upon in the book. The Hobbits become embroiled in great events that threaten their entire world, as Sauron , an evil spirit, attempts to regain the lost One Ring which will restore him to full potency. The storyline See the articles on The Fellowship of the Ring , The Two Towers , and The Return of the King for plot summaries.

Criticism The book was characterized as "juvenile balderdash" by American critic Edmund Wilson in his essay " Oo, those awful Orcs ", and in 1961 Philip Toynbee wrote, somewhat prematurely, that it had "passed into a merciful oblivion" [2] . Although she had never read The Lord of the Rings, Germaine Greer wrote "it has been my nightmare that Tolkien would turn out to be the most influential writer of the twentieth century. The bad dream has materialized." W.H. Auden also criticized the book in a 1968 Critical Quarterly article, "Good and evil in The Lord of the Rings," objecting to Tolkien's conception of sentient species that are intrinsically evil without possibility of redemption.

(This is a criticism often directed at Dungeons and Dragons -like fantasy worlds as well as at fantasy literature in general, and a criticism that Tolkien himself increasingly struggled with during his last years.) On the other hand, in a 1956 New York Times book review, "At the end of the Quest, Victory," Auden also called the book "a masterpiece of its genre" that "succeeded where Milton failed" in depicting an epic battle between good and evil, and wrote that it "never violated" the "reader's sense of the credible." Furthermore, like almost every fantasy book, Lord of the Rings is also accused by Evangelicals for its alleged references to quasi-pagan elements and "occultism". Science-fiction author David Brin has criticized the books for unquestioning devotion to a traditional elitist social structure, their positive depiction of the slaughter of the opposing forces, and their romantic backward-looking worldview [3] . These criticisms often supply also similar accusations about racism . Another notable SF writer Michael Moorcock wrote a long and piercing critique of the book under the title Epic Pooh advancing the thesis that it was simply a child's tale written in the language of epic myth.

China Mieville, a modern fantasy writer, criticised Tolkien's works as "reactionary." Mieville is also a detractor of later fantasy which draws heavily upon Tolkien's work, based on the idea that such work is cliche. Alternative Titles J.R.R. Tolkien contemplated numerous alternative titles for The Lord of the Rings and its volumes before the final titles were chosen. An early title for the trilogy was "The Magic Ring" ( John D. Rateliff , The History of The Hobbit ). From a letter to Rayner Unwin , Tolkien writes: "Would it not do if the 'book-titles' were used: e.g. The Lord of the Rings: Vol. I The Ring Sets out (sic) and The Ring Goes South; Vol. II The Treason of Isengard, and The Ring goes East; Vol. III The War of the Ring, and The End of the Third Age? "If not, I can at the moment think of nothing better than: I The Shadow Grows II The Ring in the Shadow III The War of the Ring or The Return of the King." ― The Letters of J.R.R.

Tolkien , Letter 136 A note from this letter states a manuscript located at Marquette University , Milwaukee, USA, has a different set of titles: Vol. I The First Journey and The Journey of the Nine Companions; Vol. II The Treason of Isengard and The Journey of the Ringbearers; Vol. III The War of the Ring and The End of the Third Age. In Letter 139 Tolkien writes again to Unwin with his new preferences: The Return of the Shadow, II The Shadow Lengthens, and III The Return of the King. On August 17th he writes his updated choices: I The Fellowship of the Ring, II The Two Towers (deliberately ambiguous), III The War of the Ring. Adaptations of The Lord of the Rings Film Main article: The Lord of the Rings (1978 film) This film, originally released by United Artists , was directed by Ralph Bakshi and used an animation technique called rotoscoping in which footage of live actors was filmed and then traced over.

The film was part one of what was originally to be a two-part adaptation of Tolkien's story, Part I ending after the battle of Helm's Deep, but before Sam, Frodo and Gollum traverse the Dead Marshes , and Part II picking up from where the first film left off. Made for a minimal budget of $8 million dollars, the film earned $30 million dollars at the box office. United Artists viewed the film as a flop, and refused to fund a Part II (covering the rest of the story), leaving the door open for Rankin/Bass to do the work for him. Rankin/Bass Main article: The Return of the King (1980 film) The 1980 animated television version of The Return of the King picked up from where the book began, and not from where Bakshi's film left off. Additionally, the change in style and character design was quite noticeable. Since this film was targeted to a younger audience, adult enthusiasts have complained that much of the depth and darkness of the book was discarded. Peter Jackson Main article: The Lord of the Rings (film series) Miramax developed a full-fledged live-action adaptation of The Lord of the Rings, with Peter Jackson as director.

Eventually, Miramax became uneasy with the sheer scope of the proposed project and wanted to combine the suggested two films into one. Peter Jackson struck a deal with Miramax that if he could not find a fresh studio to back the project, he would walk away and leave the rights and all the work so far completed with Miramax. However, in 1998, New Line Cinema assumed production responsibility, unexpectedly announcing that it would mount three, not just two films (while Miramax executives Bob Weinstein and Harvey Weinstein retained on-screen credits as executive film producers). The three live action films (supplemented with extensive computer-generated imagery, for example in the major battle scenes, using the " Massive " software) were filmed simultaneously. Jackson filmed all the major scenes in his native New Zealand. The Fellowship of the Ring was released on December 19, 2001. The Two Towers was released on December 18, 2002 and The Return of the King was released worldwide on December 17, 2003. All three films won the Hugo Award for Best (Long-form) Dramatic Presentation in their respective years.

Although some have criticized these films because they have altered the story somewhat and, arguably, have a noticeably different tone from Tolkien's original vision, others have hailed them as remarkable achievements. Peter Jackson has defended his changes by stating that he views the films as merely one man's interpretation. Peter Jackson 's film adaptations garnered seventeen Oscars (four for The Fellowship of the Ring, two for The Two Towers, and eleven for The Return of the King). The Return of the King won all of the eleven awards for which it was nominated, including Best Picture -- it was the first film of the fantasy genre to do so. With 30 total nominations, the trilogy became the most-nominated in the Academy's history, surpassing the Godfather series' 28 nominations. The Return of the King's Oscar sweep is widely seen as a proxy award for the entire trilogy. The Return of the King's 11 Oscars at the 2004 Academy Awards tied it for most awards won for one film with Titanic six years earlier and the 1959 version of Ben-Hur. It also broke the previous "sweep" record, beating Gigi and The Last Emperor.

The visual-effects work has been groundbreaking, particularly the creation of the emotionally versatile digital character Gollum . The scale of the production alone — three films shot and edited back to back over a period of little more than three years — is unprecedented. The films have also proven to be substantial box office successes. The premiere of The Return of the King took place in Wellington , New Zealand , on December 1, 2003 and was surrounded by fan celebrations and official promotions (the production of the films having contributed significantly to the New Zealand economy). The movie earned $34.5 million on its opening day, making it the seventh-largest opening day for a film released on a Wednesday [4] . The Return of the King was also the second movie in history (after Titanic) to earn over 1 billion $US (worldwide). Fanatics of the films have also flocked to the locations where the trilogy was filmed in New Zealand, with many tour companies being totally devoted to taking fans to and from the filming locations that Director Peter Jackson chose for the adaptation of Tolkien’s epic trilogy. Radio The BBC produced a 13-part radio adaptation of The Lord of the Rings in 1955.

It was panned by Tolkien, complaining about the "sillification" of it and the changing of characters, such as Old Man Willow in league with Mordor and Goldberry being Tom Bombadil's daughter rather than his wife. No recording has survived.[ source? ] A 1979 dramatization was broadcast in the USA and subsequently issued on tape and CD. No cast or credits appear on the audio packaging. Each of the actors was apparently recorded separately and then the various parts were edited together. Thus, unlike a BBC recording session where the actors are recorded together, none of the cast are actually interacting with each other and the performances suffer badly as a result. In 1981 the BBC broadcast a new, ambitious dramatization of The Lord of the Rings in 26 half-hour installments. Stage Mirvish Productions has started rehearsals for a three-hour stage musical adaptation of The Lord of the Rings that will have a cast of over 65 actors and cost C$27 million (£11.5 million). The show will be written by Shaun McKenna and Matthew Warchus with music by A. R.

Rahman and Värttinä , collaborating with Christopher Nightingale and will be directed by Matthew Warchus . It will open on March 23 2006 at Toronto's Princess of Wales Theatre, with preview performances from February 2 until March 22. It is planned to premiere in London in autumn 2006 and New York City within two years. The director explained his vision of the play’s format by saying, "We have not attempted to pull the novel towards the standard conventions of musical theatre, but rather to expand those conventions so that they will accommodate Tolkien's material. As a result, we will be presenting a hybrid of text, physical theatre, music and spectacle never previously seen on this scale. To read the novel is to experience the events of Middle-earth in the mind’s eye; to watch the films is to view Middle-earth as though through a giant window. Only in the theatre are we actually plunged into the events as they happen. The environment surrounds us. We participate.

We are in Middle-earth." Awards In 1957 it was awarded the International Fantasy Award In the 2003 "Big Read" survey conducted by the BBC, The Lord of the Rings was found to be the "Nation's Best-loved Book" [5] . Australians voted The Lord of the Rings "My Favourite Book" in a 2004 survey conducted by the Australian ABC In a 1999 poll of Amazon.com customers, The Lord of the Rings was judged to be their favourite "book of the millennium". [6] In 2002 Tolkien was voted the ninety-second "greatest Briton" in a poll conducted by the BBC In 2004 he was voted thirty-fifth in the SABC3's Great South Africans, the only person to appear in both lists In a 2004 poll inspired by the UK’s "Big Read" survey, about 250,000 Germans found The Lord of the Rings to be their favourite work of literature. [7] The Lord of the Rings came in 3rd in the Librarians' Poll [8] The Lord of the Rings

Question: What is the first part of JRR Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings trilogy called?
Answer: The Fellowship of the Ring